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Even with the knowledge that Afghanistan has suffered terrorist violence for almost two decades now, the brutal attacks on the maternity ward and the funeral in the holy month of Ramadan, have unleashed a wave of horror and disgust that is unlikely to die down anytime soon.

As the US pulls out its troops from Afghanistan, all eyes are set on the potential role China can play in the region. China has shown signs of stepping up its engagement with Afghanistan since the formation of the new government in Kabul in September 2014.

The global effort to meet the targets set by the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the Sustainable Development Goals will depend crucially on reforming the structure of development finance. Mobilising private capital will be an essential part of this effort, and existing development finance institutions, led by the complex of multilateral development banks (MDBs), will have to re-orient their strategies and functioning to prioritise this mobi

China is luring the region and the world with its ambitions and the US is offering incoherence. This mismatch is at the heart of the present turmoil in the region

As China’s leverage increases, New Delhi has to reimagine its terms of engagement with neighbours

Stakeholder groups have produced various guidelines on ethical Artificial Intelligence (AI) in recent years. However, translating principles into practice continues to be a massive challenge, as AI markets expand and AI risks are heightened. AI audits—or the process of investigating an algorithm against existing regulations and known harms—are emerging as a way of bridging the gap between principle and practice. This paper scans the landscape

The National Security Council Secretariat, headed by top spy Ajit Doval, may have gotten a staggering 311% increase in funds this year to tackle issues at the intersection of cybersecurity and nuclear weapon delivery systems.

This paper presents a status report of the BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) on two crucial development parameters—inequality and poverty—that have a significant bearing on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs; especially SDG-1 and SDG-10). The paper tracks the origins and movements of absolute and relative poverty, and income and wealth inequality in the BRICS economies over time, highlights the associated cha

Having already replaced the United States as Brazil's largest trading partner, China-Brazil trade is set for further boost, with benefits to both the economies. However, the increase in trade, and also the huge trade gap between the countries, is becoming a major challenge for Brazil's policy-makers.

The debate on digital transactions and the merits of a “cashless” economy engaged public attention in India in the past year. This paper steers the debate towards articulating an appropriate strategy that can bring the Indian economy closer to becoming “cashless”. The paper begins with an exposition of the theoretical model of the digitalisation process, identifying a set of core structural parameters that determine a nation’s readiness

China sees its primary focus as on neutralising the US- Japan challenge on its eastern seaboard. To that end, maintaining an even keel in its relationship with India makes good sense.

The 13th round of military commander’s talks between India and China will take place at Moldo today.

Liberal democracies remain vulnerable to Chinese machinations as the country’s capacity to launch influence operations abroad attains new heights

In the past seven decades, China has been actively building civilian, military, and dual-use infrastructure in Xinjiang and Tibet—which it calls, respectively, the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) and the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR). This infrastructure web runs close to India’s northern borders, over which clashes have led to two standoffs in the recent past: in mid-2017 (at Doklam) and in mid-2020 (in Galwan Valley). China’s inf

Beijing’s pressure on Taiwan and on other countries is generating greater sympathy and support for Taiwan.

The rise of modern technologies may drastically alter the employment landscape in India, potentially displacing large portions of the workforce. India requires an inclusive future of work that retains those currently in work while also creating sufficient new opportunities for the growing labour force. This paper reviews extant literature on technological change, automation, and their impact on the future of work in India and, by extension, educa

Much of the internal conflict in Pakistan has centered on the question of national identity - what does it mean to be a Pakistani? This was the underlying theme of the round-table discussion on Current Events in Pakistan: Impact on Sindh and Balochistan organised by Observer Research Foundation on January 29 in New Delhi.

Some voices in India had advocated a tough response to the Chinese. This would be untimely and irresponsible. In retrospect, the handling of the situation which involved a symmetrical non-threatening military response by Indian forces, along with patient diplomacy has paid off.

While arguments over methodologies and calculations will find its way to the courts, the telecom regulator believes that symmetry in tariffs will bring about symmetry in traffic.

Nor has the Narendra Modi government been deaf to the needs of the farming community.

Why do Indian and Pakistani leaders succumb to the predictable? There's so much déjà vu about their peace process being derailed by border firings and terrorist strikes that the wider world has begun to yawn

In recent years, different research institutions, government bodies, and private entities across countries have issued principles and guidelines for the ethical use of Artificial Intelligence (AI). There is little consensus, however, over universal ethical principles and how to implement them. What are the similarities and differences in AI ethics discussions across geographies, and what are the existing gaps? Crucially, if the larger goa

New Delhi needs to note that China’s estrangement from the US is not as serious as the one with India.

Goals of universal financial inclusion have acquired new wings in India, with the mobile phone now seen as a catalyst in realising such aspirations. This brief analyses India’s performance in leveraging mobile phones for financial inclusion. It throws light not only on the various factors that have propelled the use of mobile banking, but also those that have served as obstacles for such use. The brief also proposes a strategy that has been dev

The United States, Japan, India, Australia – may emerge as guarantors of free trade and defense cooperation to check China

Out of the 660,000 habitations in India with a population of 100 or more, only 33,000 have a commercial bank branch. That's approximately one branch for every 20 habitations.

India's self-image needed a re-boot. This rebooting of India's 1.3 billion aspirations was conducted by the Prime Minister on the 15th of August last year. He did it with characteristic simplicity, by a simple call for "Make in India". Financial inclusion is the building block for unleashing the creative capabilities of this country.

Financial inclusion is critical to achieving the economic empowerment of women—one of the targets under the fifth Sustainable Development Goal on gender equality. In India, one in every five women lack access to a bank account. Although the country’s programmes promoting financial inclusion have increased the percentage of women having access to a bank account, wide gaps remain in account use, and access to savings and credit. Women c

A number of initiatives have been recently undertaken to improve the tourism sector in India. These include the introduction of tourist police at key tourist sites in Delhi and the decision to set up an inter-ministerial group to facilitate better co-ordination between the tourism and civil aviation ministries.

Cities across the globe are increasingly using materials such as concrete, which store more thermal energy than natural materials and absorb sunlight rather than reflecting it, warming their surroundings. This ‘urban heat island’ (UHI) effect has consequences on health, ranging from heat exhaustion to cerebrovascular events and circulatory failures resulting in death. Compounding the challenge is that the impact of extreme heat on health is u

Historically, the values of gender-caste-based minorities have been systematically kept aside from being even counted, and this bias leads the prior data to be gender-biased or rather gender-invisible.

The recent violent actions of the Maoists have made big news. It will not be easy to resolve this problem because these are the people who have been deprived of their land and development, and they form the core of the movement. Only better distribution of the growth story can bring peace to these people

Mr S. Jaishankar is reported to have said he was happy to join “the Tata Group… India’s most respected brand globally”.

It has been a year since the Galwan clashes in Ladakh that led to the deaths of 20 Indians and 5 Chinese soldiers.

Competitive welfarism is a consequence of India's failure to deliver inclusive growth. Can it be shaped so future growth is assured?

Half a century after the first United Nations Conference on the Exploration and Peaceful Uses of Outer Space, the current debates are focused on new sets of challenges such as space mining, which used to belong only to the realm of science fiction.  This paper analyses the rationale for extraterrestrial mining, as well as the efforts and responses of various countries—i.e, USA, Luxembourg, Russia, China and India. In examining the legal and go

The purpose is to create, through law, a permanent threat to hang over every single Muslim head in India